Technologies clés de 2010 Le rapport du Ministère de l'Économie, des Finances et de l'Industrie sur les "Technologies clés 2010" a été largement repris par la presse, qui, on le comprend, a plutôt relayé le communiqué de presse que synthétisé les 345 pages et 83 technologies-clés repérées par la centaine d'experts auteurs du rapport. Ce type d'exercice prospectifs valant tout autant, sinon plus, pour ce qu'ils révèlent d'une époque que pour ce qu'ils préfigurent du futur, il nous a semblé pertinent de le confronter à la lecture des deux rapports qui l'ont précédé en 1995 et 2000. Que sait-on prévoir ? Les techno clefs en 1995 On y lisait également que le succès mitigé des applications multimédias "laisse penser qu'un tel marché n'est pas mûr et que l'expression claire d'un besoin par le grand public fait encore défaut. Il n'est pas impossible que le manque d'imagination des concepteurs d'applications soit en cause". 2000 : l'émergence des usages Vers une "économie fondée sur la connaissance" En aparté
Lexical Analysis of 2008 US Presidential and Vice-Presidiential Debates - Who's the Windbag? Lexical Analysis of 2008 US Presidential and Vice-Presidential Debateshome | Martin Krzywinski : projects contact 1 minute summary Metrics of speech structure of candidates fall within narrow tolerances, suggesting high degree of wordsmithing and rehearsal. For example, noun/verb/adjective/adverb ratio spread is very small with candidates' values within 2%. Analysis of the Biden/Palin debate suggests that speech of Vice-Presidential candidates is less complex and more repetitive than that of their Presidential counterparts, with Biden being the most repetitive speaker and Palin having the longest sentences, of all four debates. ^Thematic profiles of all three Presidential Debates (large) (PDF) show parts of the debate in which specific topics were discussed: nuclear issues, fear mongering, military matters, economic crisis, health concerns, energy and the environment. Introduction The analysis presented here explores word usage in the 2008 US Presidential and Vice-Presidential debates.
China over the top Rhetoric Rhetoric Rhetoric is the study of effective speaking and writing. "That form of speaking which has the intention of making an impact upon, persuading, or influencing a public audience." Rhetorical devices are frequently used consciously in advertising and in public speeches to create an effect. Rhetoric may be used to present a case in the most effective way, showing verbal dexterity. Examples of Rhetorical Devices Onomatopoeia (sounds suggest meaning) Metaphor (a thing is spoken of as being that which it only resembles) Syllogism (a logical argument in three parts - two premises and a conclusion which folows necessarily from them) Irony (deliberate use of words to mean the opposite of their literal meaning) Allegory (a symbolic narrative) Isocolon (the use of clauses or phrases of equal length) Antithesis (words balanced in contrast) Anaphora (repetition of a word at the beginning of consecutive sentences) Hyperbole (exaggeration) Two basic principles of Socrates: 1. The Skills of Rhetoric
Le Monde as usual : Actualités à la Une Do euphemisms soften the impact of war or mask the truth? Casualty ‘He had been trained to take out other men. We had made sure his weaponry was smart, And softened up the enemy with carpet Bombing. By some friendly fire.’ Instead he could have taken out some girls, The mirror having proved him smart enough; And one, perhaps, happy to take him home, Might have softened up on some dark carpet By some friendly fire. In his short poem ‘Casualty’, Gerry Abbott responds to the use of euphemisms for killing often seen and heard in the media. He looks first at the use of euphemisms in daily life as a way of avoiding delicate or taboo subject matter and refers to these as ‘respectful’ euphemisms. He then turns his attention to the increased use in recent years of military euphemisms used in war reporting. Of course, as Abbott acknowledges, euphemisms thrive in spheres other than military contexts. The main thrust of this paper, then, is that the use of euphemisms in these contexts points to a lack of truthfulness. Abbott, G. (2010).
La rentrée 2010 - Actualité Theatre La frénésie des courses de Noël à peine terminée, la dinde encore tiède et les chocolats tout juste entamés, 2010 arrive. Après les bombances matérielles, il est temps de se tourner vers des nourritures plus spirituelles. Evene vous propose sa sélection. Car que l'on préfère le théâtre ou la danse, que l'on soit jeune ou moins jeune, la rentrée de janvier s'annonce elle aussi pleine de jolis cadeaux. 'Un tramway', mise en scène de Krzysztof Warlikowski En 2007, le metteur en scène polonais avait investi le théâtre de l'Odéon avec un 'Krum' poignant. Voir toutes les dates 'Le Cas Jekyll', mise en scène de Denis Podalydès Denis Podalydès dans Le Cas Jekyll, mise en scène de Denis Podalydès(c) Elisabeth CarecchioPubliée en 1886, la nouvelle de Robert Louis Stevenson propose l'une des visions les plus marquantes de la complexité de l'homme. Voir toutes les dates
How do political leaders justify their actions? We’ve probably all been in a situation where we felt the need to justify or ‘legitimise’ our behaviour or actions in some way. This legitimisation usually takes the form of providing arguments which can explain our actions or even our opinions about something. There can be many reasons why we do this; to gain social acceptance; perhaps an attempt to get or maintain power; to improve relationships or maybe to achieve popularity or fame. Whatever the reason, in most cases when we do this, we’re looking to get the support or approval of the person or people that we’re talking to. A good example of where we see this process of legitimisation in action is in political discourse. Politicians (or ‘political actors’) need the support of the electorate and they must therefore justify their actions, non-actions or their ideological standing on a particular issue in order to gain that support. The third strategy is legitimisation through rationality.
Ideology and Symbolic power: Between Althusser and Bourdieu. Western Marxism has often laid considerable stress upon the ideology of modern capitalist societies. This focus upon ideology stems from the failure of proletarian revolution to have either occurred, or establish socialism within Western Europe. The exact nature and function of ideology became paramount in Marxian explanations of the continued stability of Western capitalism after the Great War and Great Depression. Marxian conceptualizations of symbolic domination (under the notion of ideology) remain in the realm of consciousness and intellectual frameworks. Like Bourdieu, Althusser endeavor to understand symbolic domination was derived from the problem of social production and reproduction of stratified social structures. The conception of ideology developed by Althusser differed in some respects to prior theoretical expositions of the concept, but it still retained essential elements common to Marxian analyses. Written by Mathew Toll. Bibliography.
Why do politicians use business jargon? 5 February 2013Last updated at 19:46 ET Going forward. Leverage. Level playing field. In the business of politics, politicians increasingly use corporate buzzwords. There was a line that stood out in Barack Obama's second inaugural address last month, but not in a carve-it-on-the-Lincoln-memorial sort of way. Before 800,000 onlookers, the freshly anointed US President had just recited the famous passage from the American Declaration of Independence, proclaiming man's unalienable rights to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". Then, his lips moving mesmerically on the jumbo TV screens that lined Washington's National Mall, he went on: "Today we continue a never-ending journey, to bridge the meaning of those words with the realities of our time. Continue reading the main story “Start Quote These truths have never been self-executing; that while freedom is a gift from God, it must be secured by His people here on Earth” End QuoteBarack Obama Full text Continue reading the main story
Agreement in the House of Lords? Not likely! A vintage engraving from 1861 showing tumult in the House of Lords Anyone who has watched Question Time in either the House of Commons or the House of Lords of the British Parliament will know that there is a certain kind of institutional rudeness which is acceptable as part of the ritualized confrontational encounters that take place there. It is the job of MPs and Members of the House of Lords to question government ministers on matters for which they are responsible. Disagreement is therefore part and parcel of this particular context and interaction. However, the participants are also bound by the rules of the respective Houses and perhaps this is especially so in the House of Lords, where some of the highly formal traditions have been in place since the 14th century and which account for the sometimes archaic language and behaviour. So, in this situation, how do the Lords ‘do’ disagreement? Robles, Jessica. (2011).
How do women fare in parliament? In 2006, Tony Blair told the House of Commons that the next election would be a contest between "a heavyweight and a flyweight". He predicted that his successor, Gordon Brown, would knock out the Conservative leader, David Cameron, with a "big, clunking fist". These remarks delighted the Cameron camp while appalling many on Blair's own side. Labour supporters feared for their electoral prospects if voters got the idea that, as one journalist put it, "Gordon Brown is from Mars, David Cameron is from Venus". Today it is a truism that effective leaders do not use "big, clunking fists": in the words of the management guru Tom Peters, they "listen, motivate, support". They wear their authority lightly and are not afraid to show their feelings. But Cameron is also a typical Venusian leader in another, more paradoxical way: he is a man. The House of Commons is a peculiarly Martian institution. Officially, arcane rules of courtesy govern the speech of MPs. Why do women behave in this way?
Twitter reveals the language of persuasion As countless political orators have demonstrated, it’s not just what you say, it’s how you say it. Using automated text analysis, Cornell researchers have identified an array of features that can make a message more likely to get attention. They tested their ideas on Twitter, where their computer algorithm predicted more accurately than human observers which version of a tweet would be retweeted more. The results might be applied to longer forms of discourse, from essays to getting your idea accepted in a committee meeting. “We’re looking at persuasion everywhere,” said Lillian Lee, professor of computer science and information science. Twitter enabled the researchers to conduct a controlled experiment to eliminate the effects of the popularity of the poster or the topic: Many posters will tweet on the same topic more than once, with different wording. On Twitter, many posts are links to websites the poster thinks are important. Ask people to share.
Advertising and Language: The Power of Words | More Than Branding It is possible that the evolution and progress of humanity have, as a deeper root, our communication skills. The use and abuse of language has allowed us to push our thinking to the outside - or distort its content - and send misleading messages, which in disciplines such as marketing can severely affect the level of persuasion a brand would like to achieve on its consumers. Countless campaigns are developed around the world with the sole purpose of positioning products and generating massive brigades over the shelves on what are the most powerful retail chains in the world. Both Advertising and Marketing use graphical, textual, verbal or sound communication tools in order to construct messages that lead to consumption of products and services that are offered by a brand that invests in these efforts of persuasion. Here are some variables that are influential in the development of messages designed to communicate brand value: Simplicity Story Conciseness Context Rhetoric Symbology